<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Loss, Grief, and Life by Mcyashna1</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29772300">Loss, Grief, and Life</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mcyashna1/pseuds/Mcyashna1'>Mcyashna1</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Dabble in Drabbles [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canonical Character Death, Gen, Grief/Mourning, I'm Sorry, Sad, This is just sad and i'm sorry</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 01:14:46</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>749</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29772300</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mcyashna1/pseuds/Mcyashna1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Its just a sad idea about George learning to live without Fred-- and how that might look. Its just a short Drabble.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Dabble in Drabbles [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2188197</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Loss, Grief, and Life</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>George doesn’t talk for weeks after the war. After Fred’s death. </p><p>He participates somewhat with the family, but it is different now. Little things throw him off, he had to change where he sat at the table, because he couldn’t help but look at the seat that was usually empty but used to have his best friend. </p><p>He started to sleep on the couch, not able to go into his room; not with the scorch marks, and the bunkbed, and Fred’s pictures of girls and scribbled notes with ideas for new product. He sleeps on the couch for a week before Charlie drags him upstairs and into his room, it is odd and different but George feels safe surrounded by replica dragons and the smell of slightly burnt clothing. </p><p>When he finally starts talking it is in fits and starts. Stopping for a split second for his brother to jump in and finish the sentence. Waiting to hear his twin’s voice chip in. He talks quieter now, not as excited about things, because, well…when every time you open your mouth you hear a sibling that’s gone. You want to say as little as possible.</p><p> </p><p>He stops walking by mirrors, for the first few months he thought it was Fred. Molly notices and removes or covers all of them. She worries about George, he grew his hair out, and started a terrible beard (it doesn’t last very long), but she understands. Molly doesn’t call him the wrong name any more. While that was something that used to bother him and Fred. He misses it now. </p><p>Missing his brother like he is missing a limb, like he’s missing ear.</p><p> </p><p>His first full sentence came nearly a year after the war. He asked Ron to join him at the joke shop. It wasn’t opening, it was just to make sure most everything was there. Checking on damages, cleaning out what had gone bad. He couldn’t do it alone. Not after he had poured so much of his life into it, not when Fred had done it right at his side. Not when half the products in the store had been Fred’s design. </p><p> </p><p>Ron knew how hard it was for George to go into the shop. Saw him stop at the edge of the door, it was hard for him too, but knew it would be nearly impossible for his brother to face what he had built, what <em>they</em> had built. He was proud of his brothers, he always had been proud of all his siblings, but George coming back to what had become his home with Fred-- not even a year after the…after the war. It made his heart ache with pride at the strength George was showing and that he had to face this loss at all.</p><p>Ron watched George stand in the center of the shop, his hand absently rubbing just below where his ear used to be, a sign that he was mentally freaking out, that he was lost in memories of Fred. George shook it off and forced a smile and with a wave of his wand the store came to life, and with it Ron saw a bit of the old George again. </p><p> </p><p>It was almost three years after the war that George visited the cemetery. </p><p>He had come alone.</p><p> He sat by the stone, the one that he had chosen the inscription for but never seen (I solemnly swear I’m up to no good…). </p><p>He told Fred everything that had happened, his voice shaky and sometimes no more than a whisper, stopping to see if someone would fill in what was too hard for him. He was doing better, but still missed his brother and doubted that ache would ever go away. He didn't want the ache to go away either, clinging on to every memory and thought about his twin.</p><p>George was speaking again, but more importantly he was laughing, helping to create joy and fun at schools and work places. Weasley Wizard Wheezes was up and running again. Charlie had joined the research team on a part time basis, creating dragons that would help with nightmares for kids or adults, scaring or spelling away bad dreams. Ron was great at testing the many items they created. Even Percy stopped in to help on occasion.</p><p> George was making it through day by day. Word by word, and smile by smile. </p><p>“I’ll come back soon okay, Freddie?” George whispered. Maybe things would be okay.</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>